Wastebed 13 risk assessment expected to be done in about three weeks

Camillus, NY -- Federal environmental officials expect to complete within three weeks an assessment of the risk to human health posed by burying Onondaga Lake sediment in Wastebed 13 in Camillus.

Robert Nunes, the Environmental Protection Agency’s project manager for the Onondaga Lake cleanup, said the assessment was begun two weeks ago in anticipation of a request earlier this week by U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer and Rep. Dan Maffei.

Some Camillus residents say that burying sediment contaminated with mercury, PCBs and other material poses a threat to human health and the environment. They want to know what chemical compounds are in the sediment and the health hazard those compounds pose.

Burying the sediment in Wastebed 13 is part of the overall project to clean up Onondaga Lake.

Nunes said the EPA and DEC have taken thousands of samples and already know what chemicals are in the sediment. He’s aware residents might not be happy with the EPA’s findings.

“They may not like it. They may think we didn’t do it right. Hopefully they will give it a fair evaluation when we present it to them,” Nunes said.

State Department of Environmental Conservation Regional Director Ken Lynch said the assessment process should not delay the start of site preparation at Wastebed 13. That work is expected to start sometime this summer.

Mike Sivak, the EPA’s technical support team leader on the Onondaga Lake project, said a risk assessment specifically for Wastebed 13 had not been done because the sediment won’t be exposed to the air.

“The materials were going to be encapsulated from the time they are dredged from the lake to the time they are encapsulated in the wastebed,” he said.